


New Beginnings

by bansheequeen (queenbanshee), xtremeroswellian



Series: Moving Targets [22]
Category: Smallville
Genre: Bestest Cousins, F/M, Love, Making Love, Weddings, happy endings, marriage proposals
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-17
Updated: 2020-05-18
Packaged: 2021-03-02 17:00:11
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,940
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24240202
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/queenbanshee/pseuds/bansheequeen, https://archiveofourown.org/users/xtremeroswellian/pseuds/xtremeroswellian
Summary: After defeating Lex, the team goes back to Star City for a long due quiet time.
Relationships: Lois Lane & Chloe Sullivan, Oliver Queen & Mia Dearden, Oliver Queen/Chloe Sullivan
Series: Moving Targets [22]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1748179
Kudos: 4





	1. Chapter 1

**Headquarters, Star City -- July 11, 2011**

Oliver was physically and mentally exhausted by the time the jet landed in Star City, and by the time they made it back to headquarters, all he wanted to do was climb in a hot shower and then take a nosedive into bed, with Chloe beside him. He was pretty sure the rest of the team was as worn out as he was, and he could tell that Mia, at least, was definitely exhausted, considering she’d fallen asleep with her head on his shoulder in the car on the way back. 

He carried her inside without waking her up, heading up the stairs slowly so not to jostle her from her slumber. He glanced back and saw Chloe following him, her expression unreadable. 

So his proposal hadn’t turned out to be romantic. 

It had, however, been extremely sincere and open. He hoped that at least he had that in his favor. And that he hadn’t frightened her off. 

Chloe pressed a hand to his back and rubbed it a little, she was also exhausted but she knew the day wasn’t over, at least not for them. She tried for a tired smile and made her way to her room, disappearing inside of it.

He watched her go, then exhaled slowly, carrying Mia into her bedroom. He gently laid her down on the bed and tugged the covers up around her, pressing a kiss to her forehead before heading for the door. 

With a deep breath, Chloe took off her shoes and sighed, rubbing her hands over her face then making her way to the closet so she could get clothes before she took a shower.

Oliver paused in the doorway of her bedroom a moment later, holding his breath. 

Feeling eyes on her, Chloe turned around and wasn’t surprised to see him there, she held her breath, too and stared at him for a long moment, “go take a shower,” she told him, “I’ll do the same, then come back here?”

“No showering together for strictly environmental purposes?” A small, uncertain smile tugged at his lips.

She smiled a little at that and shook her head, “not tonight.”

Oliver bit his lip and nodded, turning to head out the door. 

“Come back when you’re done, okay?” She asked him, her voice wavering a little as she watched him.

“Sure,” he said softly, nodding again and heading down the hallway. He rubbed his eyes tiredly, inwardly cursing himself. 

He had a feeling he’d really screwed up this time. 

* * * 

After she showered and changed into her pajamas, or a pair of pajama bottoms and a t-shirt that used to belong to Oliver, Chloe got into bed and waited. Her stomach was tight, her heart was beating fast and she was taking deep breaths every ten or fifteen seconds as she told herself to remain calm. She had been quiet the entire flight back, not because she had been thinking about what had happened after Tess left, but because she didn’t want to give Oliver a chance to ask her anything else until she was ready for him to. 

And now she was.

Oliver raked a hand through his damp hair as he made his way down the hallway once more toward Chloe’s room, clad in a pair of sweatpants. He drew in a breath and released it slowly, pausing outside the door to try and calm his nerves. Then he stepped inside and met her eyes from across the room. 

Chloe held his gaze and her heart skipped a beat, she let out her breath slowly and offered him a small smile.

It took him a moment to return the smile as he tried to decipher if it was a ‘I’m about to break up with you’ smile or a ‘let’s just pretend you didn’t ask me that life altering question’ smile or something else entirely. He smiled back hesitantly. 

She shifted on the bed and pursed her lips together, moving until she was sitting on the edge of the bed, her legs hanging from the side, “close the door,” she told him.

Close the door. 

Bad sign. 

Swallowing hard, he slowly shut the door behind him and leaned against it. “Chloe, look--” 

Shaking her head, she stood up, taking a deep breath and looking over at him, “come here,” she said quietly.

Oliver rubbed the back of his neck as he slowly moved toward her. 

Chloe met him halfway and watched him for a moment before looking down and taking both his hands in hers, “is that what you kept trying to talk to me about?” She asked quietly, still looking down for a moment before turning her head up to look at him.

He drew in a breath, meeting her eyes. “Yes,” he admitted softly. “And we kept getting interrupted.” 

She squeezed his hands and smiled a little, “is that why you were pouting all of last week?”

“I wasn’t pouting,” he protested. Then he grinned a little, sheepish. “Okay, maybe I was.” 

Smiling a little, Chloe gave him a knowing look then nodded, taking a deep breath, “you know I can’t say yes to that, right?”

His face fell, and he quickly looked down. “Right,” he murmured. 

“Ollie,” she shook her head and smiled a little more, “we were at the _barn_ , where I got married last time. I had a crossbow in my hand and a gun in my pants, there were four bodies surrounding us and half of our teammates were unconscious on the ground.” 

She let out her breath and squeezed his hands tightly, “I know that’s how our lives are and I know a lot of our relationship is messed up when we compare it to other people, but I don’t want _that_ to be,” she told him quietly, her eyes getting teary as she looked up at him.

He winced at that. “I know,” he whispered. “That wasn’t how I wanted to ask you, Chloe, I just...” He blew out a breath and looked at her for a moment. “I didn’t want something else to stop me from asking you. Not after that.” 

“I know,” she told him, her voice wavering a little as her vision got blurry. With a deep, shaky breath, she pulled her hands from his and cupped his cheek in them, “which is why I wanted us to wash all of that away, so we wouldn’t have anything _bad_ associated with this,” she said in a whisper, “so we can do it right.”

His eyebrows furrowed at that as he gazed at her, trying to understand what it was she was saying. “Chloe--?” 

Her stomach tightened in anticipation and she let out her breath, pursing her lips together into a nervous smile and nodding a little, “do it how you had planned.”

Oliver stared at her for a moment, then kissed her softly. “Be right back,” he whispered, quickly heading out the door and down the hall. 

Chloe blinked and watched him go, rubbing her face and letting out a breath. To say she was nervous was an understatement, but she was done denying them, both of them, things because she was scared. 

He returned a moment later, holding a small velvet ring box. He met her eyes and smiled nervously, getting down on his knees in front of her. “Chloe, I love you.” He opened the box to reveal the ring. “Marry me.” 

She let out a breath, relaxing a little when she realized he looked as nervous as she felt. Pursing her lips together, she looked down at the box then stepped closer and cupped his cheek in her hands, holding his gaze as she leaned down, brushing her nose against his and resting her forehead against his, “I love you too,” she whispered to him, “and yes,” her chest tightened and her vision got blurry once more, “I will marry you, Ollie.”

A broad grin spread across his face and he kissed her softly, then plucked the ring from the box and took her hand in his, sliding it onto her ring finger. He kissed the back of her hand, then rose to his feet, wrapping his arms around her tightly. 

Chloe wrapped her arms around his neck just as tightly, closing her eyes as she turned her head and kissed his jaw and cheek blindly.

He picked her up, spinning them both around and kissing her cheek. “Thank you,” he whispered. 

Still holding on tightly to him, she laughed softly as she pulled her feet from the floor and pulled back enough to look at him, “what are you thanking me for?”

Oliver smiled at her. “For agreeing to marry me,” he admitted. 

She lifted a hand to his face, brushing her thumb against his cheek and watched him soft a moment, “I love you, Ollie,” she told him again, “you, despite all the bad things we have going on in our lives constantly, you never fail to help me relax, help me focus, make me take a break, make me _smile_ ,” she said quietly, “and while the word marriage is a big and scary one, I know I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”

Smiling brightly and teary-eyed at him, she kissed him softly then pulled back, “so thank you for asking.”

He kissed her softly again, then leaned his forehead against hers. “Come on,” he whispered, carrying her over to the bed. 

Chloe kissed him again and smiled softly, letting out a breath as he laid her down on the bed.

He gazed down at her intently, brushing his nose against hers. “I love you, Chloe,” he murmured. “You realize you saved my life last night, don’t you?” 

She shifted to her side of the bed, making room for him, “that was pretty cool, wasn’t it?” She asked, grinning a little as she pulled on his hand, trying to get him to get into bed too, “but I wouldn’t have been able to do it if you hadn’t trained me.”

He slid into the bed beside her, beneath the covers. “Oh, I don’t know.” He leaned over and kissed her forehead softly. “Maybe not with a crossbow, but I think you’ve proven you’re perfectly capable of saving my ass by other means.” 

Chloe shifted closer again once he settled in the bed and wrapped her arm around him, “let's hope I never have to do _that_ again,” she told him, raising her eyebrows.

He grinned. “I’ll second that. I don’t think I’ll need a truck again.” 

She lifted her hand to his cheek and paused for a moment, holding her breath as her eyes fell on the ring, “it’s so beautiful, Ollie,” she whispered to him, she hadn’t really taken a good look at it earlier.

His eyes softened at that. “I couldn’t find one that I really liked so I had one made,” he said softly. 

At that information, her eyebrows raised a little, “how long have you been planning this?” She asked, shifting so she was propped up on her elbow.

“Uhh.” He flashed her his best charming grin. “Not _that_ long?” he tried.

Chloe laughed softly and leaned in, kissing him for a moment then pulling back, “you realize I already said yes, right? Tell me.”

He paused, considering. “A few months,” he admitted, watching her. 

“What made you think of it?” Her voice was quieter this time and she looked at the ring for a long moment again before looking back at him.

“You remember after I got shot? A couple weeks later and...we were sitting outside?” he asked softly. 

She raised her eyebrows and smiled slowly, nodding softly and raising her hand to his cheek again.

“That was the first time it seriously crossed my mind.” He gazed at her, smiling softly. 

Chloe nodded a little and smiled, letting out a breath and looking over at him for a moment, “and it doesn’t bother you that...” she made a face, “I got married once before?”

He blinked, then cocked an eyebrow. “Not even a little bit,” he said quietly. “Does it bother you?” 

She blew out a breath and shook her head a little, “not really,” pursing her lips together she looked at him, “it's just weird to think about it, especially considering even though I had a wedding, I wasn’t really _married_ ,” she said quietly.

Oliver nodded slightly, searching her eyes. He lifted a hand to her cheek, brushing his thumb lightly over her skin. “We can do this however you want. Whenever you want. Hell, it can be just us. It doesn’t matter to me as long as we’re getting married.” 

Pursing her lips together, she watched him for a long moment then nodded, cupping his hand in hers and pressing a kiss to his wrist, “okay... that’s a lot to think about. I want you to help me with all of it.”

He kissed the tip of her nose. “Deal.” 

Chloe closed her eyes and smiled, opening her eyes after a moment and wrapping her arms around him again, pulling him close.

“Let’s get some sleep,” he whispered, burying his face against her neck and kissing her there softly. 

She shivered a little and reached over him, turning the lamp off before snuggling against his side, “sleep sounds good.”

“I love you,” he murmured. 

“I love you,” Chloe told him quietly then hugged him close, “I’m just glad we’re here and... that whole thing is over with.”

A small smile touched his lips. “That’s where you’re wrong, Professor. This whole thing is just beginning.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Headquarters, Star City -- July 12, 2011**

Chloe shifted in her sleep, waking up, apparently, for no reason at all. The house was incredibly quiet, peaceful. She stretched a little, not wanting to wake Ollie up. He was currently pressed against her back, arm and leg over her, holding her to him. A smile touched her lips as she looked down at their hands, hers was on top of his, holding on to it and she caught herself staring at the ring again.

They were getting _married_. Her heart skipped a beat at the thought. She couldn't really process that information yet. A year and half ago, she was a mess and so was he. On top of that, she would never have thought _Oliver Queen_ of all people would even look at her twice. And even after he did, she had so much to work through, _they_ had so much to work through and since the beginning, it scared her how fast and how hard she was falling for him.

But even though she was scared to admit it, she knew it was because _this_ was the real thing. It was strong, all-consuming, and although she had been in love before, it had never been like this, because it had never been _right_. Which was how she knew the answer to Mia's question just a couple of days before in the kitchen. Yes, Oliver was the one, there was no doubt in her mind about it.

And yes, it was weird to think about the fact that she wasn't even twenty-five yet and she had already gotten divorced once, and she hated to undermine what she had had with Jimmy, but they both had known all along that it wasn't going to work out. She was sure of it when she begged him to just get an annulment instead of a divorce, but he hadn't agreed to it because he was mad at her and wanted to make the process as painful as possible.

She had never told that to anyone because she didn't want anyone to think badly of him.

With Ollie... despite all the hurt she had caused him, even though she had never meant to, and even though they had said nasty things to each other in the past, she _knew_ he would never knowingly hurt her like that. He loved her, needed her and above all, _respected_ her as much as she did him. And as much as it would take some getting used to the labels such as fiance, husband, wife and even Mr. and Mrs. Queen, she knew that when the time came, it would just feel natural, _right_ , like everything else did when it came to him.

He woke up slowly, remaining relaxed when he realized she was still right beside him. A smile touched his lips and without opening his eyes, he pulled her closer to him, pressing a kiss to the back of her neck.

Chloe smiled softly at the action even as she shivered and squeezed his hand, turning her head a little toward him, sometimes, he did that in his sleep, so she wanted to make sure he was awake before saying anything.

"Morning," he murmured, nuzzling his nose against her cheek.

"Morning," she whispered, turning her head more as she shifted on the bed and kissing him softly.

Oliver smiled sleepily and returned the kiss without hesitation. "Sleep good?"

She sighed deeply and nodded, "incredibly well," like there was no evil in the world well, but she wasn't going to bring their mission up, not now. It was _their_ time, "you?"

"Me too." His arm tightened around her a little and he kissed her throat.

Closing her eyes again, she let out a breath and lifted her hand to the back of his head, running her fingers through his hair, "we should just stay here all day."

"I wouldn't protest that at all," he informed her, resting his cheek against hers.

Chloe smiled and turned a little more so she was laying on her back, "as long as we can sneak some food in here, I'm starving."

He grinned down at her. "Yeah. Me too." He winked at her.

"Okay," she took a deep breath, "here is the plan: run to the kitchen, gather as much food and drinks as we can, come back here and stay here until we run out."

He chuckled softly and dipped his head, kissing her mouth. "Here's my plan. You stay right here, and I'll go get some food."

She kissed him back then smirked, raising her eyebrows, "what if you need rescuing again?"

He smirked at that. "You won't be letting that go for awhile, will you?" he teased.

"Well, depends, are you still pouting about the truck?" She asked innocently.

Oliver lifted an eyebrow. "Pouting? No."

Chloe laughed and raised her eyebrows, "yeah, right." She shook her head, "then to answer your question, no, I won't be using this new one, I'll be sticking with the old one because it's that much better."

Without warning, he reached down and tickled her ribs.

She immediately gasped and squirmed, closing her eyes as she tried half-heartedly to pull away from him.

He grinned, shifting slightly and leaning in to kiss her. "Evil woman," he teased.

Wrapping her arms around him, she smiled innocently at him, "you love me for being evil."

"Wouldn't have it any other way." He smirked.

Chloe leaned in and kissed him again, "go get us food, if you're not back in five, I will come to your rescue."

"I'll be back in three," he informed her, pressing a kiss to her jaw before pulling away and climbing out of bed.

"T-minus and counting," she told him, smiling up at him.

"Don't miss me _too_ much," he teased, heading out the door with a grin.

"Impossible," she called after him as he made his way out of the bedroom.

He returned moments later carrying a couple bottles of water, a cup of coffee, and a box of Pop-tarts. He shut the door behind him and locked it, then made his way back over to the bed, holding the coffee cup out to her. "Just how you like it."

Chloe was already sitting up against the pillows as he made his way back, she had taken some time to text her cousin with the news, well, the other news: 'Lex is dead, we're all okay, please don't call me, I'll call you after celebrating. Love you.' And she smiled big at Ollie as he locked the door then gave her coffee, "I can't believe you managed and no one stopped you on the way."

"I think everyone's still unconscious," he said with a grin. "I didn't hear any noise at all."

" _Good_ ," she told him with a grin, sipping on her coffee, "and I just texted Lois and told her I was alive and would talk to her later so she won't be interrupting us either."

"Hm, so that means I have you...all to myself." He smirked, sliding back onto the bed and kissing her stomach lightly.

She laughed softly and shivered, holding the cup of coffee away for safety, "I thought that was the plan?"

"Oh, it was," he agreed with a nod, smirk widening as he looked up at her.

Chloe grinned and raised her eyebrows, "good, I mean, we never did celebrate properly last night."

"Well, we needed to rest and regain our energy." He grinned. "But I feel _very_ rested now. How about you?"

"Incredibly rested," she assured him, grinning as she sipped on the coffee, "and you just provided me even more energy."

"Not that that was my intention," he said, widening his eyes with mock innocence.

"Of course not," she smirked at him, taking another long sip, "but for future reference?" She said, leaning closer and holding his gaze, "morning sex? Better than coffee."

His eyes darkened a little. "I'll keep that in mind. And Chloe?"

"Yes?" She said, smiling innocently as she noticed the change in his eyes.

"You might want to set down your mug," he informed her, shifting a little on the bed and smirking.

"Oh?" Chloe asked, taking a sip before moving her mug to the bedside table, "why is that, Ollie?"

"Because I'd hate to see either of us get burned with hot coffee," he told her seriously, pulling her shirt up a little and kissing her stomach again.

She shivered again and lifted both her hands to cup the back of his head, "now that the coffee isn't an issue anymore, what happens?"

"Hmm, very good question, Professor," he murmured, gently rubbing her thigh with his thumb as he placed another kiss on her stomach, this one a little higher up.

Chloe slid down against the pillows and grinned softly, "as long as this is the direction we're taking, I think I'm okay with it."

"Which does beg another question." He nuzzled his nose against her skin. "What direction _would_ you like to take this?" He smirked, raising his eyebrows.

"Oh," Chloe smirked, running her hands down his back, "I didn't know I had a say on it..."

"Of course you do," he murmured.

"Well in that case..." she slid down even further so their faces were at the same level and wrapped her arms around his neck before kissing him deeply.

Oliver smiled against her lips, kissing her back without hesitation and sliding an arm beneath her neck. She wrapped her arms around him and pulled him as close as she could as she kissed him, adding more urgency to the kiss as it went on.

He slid his body over hers and returned the kiss with as much urgency as she presented, shifting against her.

Chloe ran her fingers over his back, adding pressure to it as she traced his muscles, once she needed to breathe, she broke the kiss and smiled up at him, "I love you."

"I love you, too," he answered, meeting her eyes and smiling softly.

She smiled more and adjusted under him until she had her legs wrapped around him, her hands rubbing over his back still, content to just stay there like that.

Oliver brushed his nose against hers lightly, trailing a hand down to her thigh as he kept his eyes on hers.

Shivering a little, she held his gaze and took a deep breath.

"You okay?" he murmured, kissing the corner of her mouth.

She raised her eyebrows and smiled slowly, lifting a hand to cup his cheek, "yeah... you?"

He grinned. "I'm good." He slid his hand up a little higher on her thigh, raising his eyebrows back at her.

"Tease," she told him, smirking and holding her breath.

"Tease, huh?" He smirked back at her and tugged her pants down with one hand.

Biting down on her bottom lip, she nodded, reaching down and pushing his sweatpants down too. He leaned down and nibbled on her bottom lip, gently parting her thighs with his hand at the same time.

Chloe let go of her bottom lip and relaxed her mouth under his, shivering and making a quiet noise at his touch. Oliver watched her intently as he slid inside of her, gritting his teeth for a moment to hold himself in check.

She moaned, closing her eyes at the feel of him inside her, opening her eyes after a moment and holding his gaze as she moved her hips slowly toward his.

He smiled, dipping his head to kiss her throat as he thrust into her slowly, then lifted his head up once more to watch her. "I love you."

"I love you," she told him again, smiling back as she watched him, closing her eyes a little as she locked her legs higher around him, feeling him slide in deeper inside of her.

He kissed her softly, shifting slightly and placing a hand on her hip to help guide his movements within her. His heart was beating quickly in his chest and he let his eyes drift shut as he rocked against her gently.

Chloe kept moving against him, slowly at first but with the spasm of her muscles, she started moving faster, moaning his name with need as she closed her eyes tightly.

He shuddered slightly at the sound of her moan and thrust into her a little faster, a little harder.

"Ollie," she called, holding on to him as they moved faster together, opening her eyes and looking up at him as she got closer, she wanted to watch him.

Oliver opened his eyes, as well, meeting her gaze and holding it as he slid a hand between them and rubbed her clit as he thrust into her.

At that, she moaned louder, struggling to keep her eyes open, holding his gaze with wide eyes, "Ollie," she cried again, shuddering as her orgasm hit her with another thrust.

He dipped his head, kissing her lips urgently as he thrust into her once more, his body shuddering as his orgasm followed almost instantly.

Chloe kissed him breathlessly, hugging him close, her legs still wrapped tightly around him. _That_ was most definitely better than coffee, she thought idly in the back of her head as she tried to catch her breath.

Oliver shifted positions and slid an arm around her back, turning them so they were on their sides, facing each other.

She opened her eyes after a moment and looked at him, breathing heavily as she shifted even closer once more.

"Chloe Sullivan-Queen," he murmured, smiling softly.

Chloe blinked at the words and smiled, biting on her bottom lip, "is that so?"

"Well, I figured you'd want to hyphenate, but I'm good however you want it," he said seriously, tracing his thumb lightly over her cheek.

She grinned and nodded, shrugging, "I think it sounds nice."

"Me too," he agreed, resting his forehead against hers.

"I guess that will be it, then," she said quietly, watching him.

Oliver gazed at her, reaching down to take one of her hands in his and bringing it to his lips, kissing her knuckles softly.

Chloe watched him for a moment, smiling and biting down on her bottom lip, "Mia knew?"

A sheepish smile spread across his mouth. "I may have...mentioned it."

"I figured," she told him, grinning and kissing him softly, "when we were talking in the kitchen, before..." she shrugged, "she was asking me if I thought you were 'the one'."

"Oh." He chuckled a little.

She grinned and raised her eyebrows, nodding, "I guess she wanted to make sure I was going to say yes."

"She must have been sure you would, cause she didn't say a word about it to me."

"I think she was," Chloe told him, hugging him and brushing her nose against his cheek, "even if I wasn't."

"Yeah." He kissed the corner of her mouth softly.

She closed her eyes for a second then opened them again, watching him silently, "I have a question."

"Okay." He raised an eyebrow, waiting.

"The first time," she started, raising her eyebrows and smirking, "with your impromptu archery lesson... were you planning things to go that way?"

Oliver paused at that, a smirk tugging at his lips. "I think some things are best left unsaid."

"Oh no," she shook her head and sat up, raising her eyebrows and grinning, "tell me."

He laid back with his head on the pillow, looking up at her. "What do you think?"

"I don't know..." she admitted, pursing her lips as she considered it, "I didn't expect it, _at all_ ," she told him quietly, "so if you were planning it, I didn't see it coming."

He reached out and tugged gently on her elbow, pulling her toward him, gazing at her. "It was the first time the opportunity presented itself where the timing felt like it might be okay."

Chloe let him pull her closer and raised her eyebrows, leaning over him, "so you were thinking about it?"

"Had been for quite awhile," he told her.

Her eyes widened a little in surprise, "really?" She whispered.

Oliver smiled a little, reaching up to touch her cheek. "Yeah."

Leaning into his touch, she smiled and shrugged, "I never would have guessed."

"Really? You never suspected at all? I thought I was being overly obvious a few times," he admitted.

Chloe rolled her eyes and shook her head, "that Oliver Queen would possibly be interested in me?" She smirked, "no, not until you got all in my personal space and started talking about heartbeats..."

At that, Oliver grinned a little and kissed the tip of her nose. "I think you need a new nickname. Oblivious."

She made a face and shook her head, "you have a lot of nicknames for me as is, I only have one for you and it's your codename so it doesn't really count."

He chuckled softly. "Well, guess you'll have to think of some to catch up to me."

"Well... there is Emerald Archer, but that's a mouthful," she said, leaning in and kissing him.

He smiled, kissing her back and brushing his nose lightly against hers.

"Did you talk to Lois about it?" She asked quietly.

He paused. "About proposing to you?"

"Yeah," she told him quietly, lifting her hand and tracing his cheekbone with her index finger.

Oliver shook his head a little. "No. The only person I talked to about it was Mia." He paused. "And Pete."

"Pete?" She echoed, surprised.

He smiled a little. "Yeah. I was thinking about it when we were in Paris."

Chloe smiled and kissed his cheek, "I guess since Lana is doing better, the three of them can be here when we do get married." At the word, her heart skipped a beat and she pursed her lips together a bit.

He searched her eyes. "It doesn't have to be right away, Chloe," he murmured. "Whenever you're ready."

"I know," she told him, taking a deep breath, "but it doesn't really matter because it will happen anyway," she told him, "and when it does, it will still make me nervous, but I think that's normal, right?"

"Yeah, it's normal," he assured her softly.

She let out her breath and kissed him softly again, relaxing, "so you don't have to worry about it."

"Neither do you." Oliver gazed at her intently, rubbing her back. "I'm going to take care of you, and you can keep taking care of me, and we'll both take care of the team." He smiled. "Which is pretty much how it is now anyway."

Chloe nodded, smiling as she held his gaze, "I know, it's just a title."

"Granted, it means you'll be stuck with me for life," he teased with a grin.

"Well, exactly," she grinned and leaned in, brushing her nose against his, "nothing is changing."

Oliver pulled her closer and kissed her chin. "I vote we stay in bed the rest of the week."

She closed her eyes and smiled, nodding, "I agree," she said lazily, and just as she did, there was a knock on the door.

He groaned a little, burying his face against her neck. "Let's just say quiet and maybe they'll go away."

Chloe sighed deeply as there was another knock followed by Mia's voice calling for Ollie, "I don't think that will work."

A small smile tugged at his lips. "You don't move," he joked, crawling out of bed and tugging his pants on again. He raked a hand through his hair and made his way across the room, glancing back at Chloe before unlocking and opening the door. "'Morning," he greeted Mia.

She did, however, slide on the t-shirt she'd been wearing and remained under the covers, just to make sure Mia was okay.

Mia raised her eyebrows and cocked her head, glancing from him to the inside of the room, "well, at least you're alive."

A small smile tugged at his lips. "I'm alive," he confirmed.

Nodding, she pursed her lips together, "well, I guess I will talk to you when you're not..." she waved her hand toward him, "busy."

Oliver chuckled softly. "I'll be out in a little bit. Everything's okay, right?"

"Yeah..." she told him, looking up at him curiously, "in there too, right?"

He smiled softly, nodding. "Everything's good."

Mia relaxed a little and looked over towards Chloe for a moment then nodded, "okay, I think Vic is making food so I'm gonna go eat."

He leaned forward and kissed her forehead. "All right. See you soon."

"Take your time," she said with a smirk before turning around and starting down the hall.

Oliver smirked and shook his head, closing the door once more, turning to look at Chloe with a raised eyebrow.

Chloe raised her eyebrows back at him, wrapping her arms around her legs as she cocked her head, "I guess that was the end of our plan?"

"Does kind of seem like it, doesn't it?" He moved back over to the bed.

"Better that kind of disturbance than the _other_ kind," she told him, smiling slowly and watching as he moved close.

"Good point." He grinned and moved closer to her, mischief clear on his face. "But she did encourage us to take our time..."

She grinned slowly and dropped her arms as well as her legs, "I suppose she did..."

Oliver grinned brightly and wrapped his arms around her, kissing her again.

What was a few more hours?


	3. Chapter 3

**Headquarters, Star City -- December 12, 2011**

Lois looked down at the light green maid-of-honor dress she was wearing and shook her head a little in amusement, heading up the stairs to her cousin’s room. “Chloe?” She knocked softly, then stepped inside, pausing when she caught sight of her. “Wow. You look incredible.” 

Chloe pursed her lips together and turned to look at her cousin, smiling nervously, “hey.”

She closed the door behind her. “Chloe, take a deep breath,” she instructed, instantly shifting into the older cousin role at the sight of her cousin’s nervousness. 

“I’m pretty sure I’m gonna step on this,” she told Lois, tugging on the bottom of the dress, “and rip it in half the second I start walking.”

Lois stifled a smile and shook her head. “I’ll be carrying it, remember? You’ll be fine. And if you still trip, I’m sure that Bart will catch you.” 

Chloe sighed deeply and nodded, her stomach in knots as she looked in the mirror once more, she hadn’t moved since Dinah and Mia helped her into her dress in fear of tripping, but most of all, she was afraid of walking out there, “what if something happens?” She said quietly.

She stood behind Chloe, gazing at her in the mirror and meeting her eyes. “It won’t,” she said softly. 

She held her cousin’s gaze and took a deep, calming breath, “Are there a lot of people here already?”

Lois rested a hand on Chloe’s back and smiled softly. “You didn’t invite _that_ many people, but I think everyone’s here, yeah.” 

Chloe reached down and picked the dress up a little so she could see Lois better, “you look amazing.”

“Thank you. I have to say, green is a good color for you.” She smirked.

“I don’t think it could have been any other color,” she told Lois, smiling, “besides, it does go well with my eyes,” she said, grinning nervously.

“Yes, it does.” Lois smiled back at her in the mirror. 

Pursing her lips together, Chloe turned fully to face Lois, “have you seen Ollie?”

“I have,” she confirmed with a slight nod. 

“How is he?” She asked, chewing on the inside of her lips as she slowly let go of her dress, letting it hit the floor again, she wouldn’t be moving until it was time anyway.

Lois smiled. “Less nervous than you,” she informed her. 

“Well, it’s a lot easier on him, he just has to wear a suit,” Chloe pointed out with a smirk.

She chuckled at that. “Yes, your lot in life is more difficult. First the pantyhouse and wedding dress and later the labor pains.” 

Chloe’s eyes widened for a moment, but her expression quickly turned into a glare, “funny, you’re very funny, Lo. I’ll have a talk with Richard before you leave, let him know how much you want a baby now that I got married, since you need to outdo me.”

At that, Lois raised an eyebrow. “Oh, no. I might eventually get married but _you_ are definitely the one that’s going to have the pretty little blond babies, not me.” 

“You’re older,” Chloe pointed out, raising her eyebrows, “you’re supposed to experience things first then help me out when it’s my turn.”

“Yeah, maybe technically but I think we both know you tend to be the one who does the stuff first in most cases.” She grinned. 

“Please,” Chloe raised her eyebrows, not even realizing that her conversation with her cousin was helping her relax, which was probably the whole point of it anyway, “getting married, well and divorced, then married again,” Chloe made a face, “is probably the only thing I’m doing first.”

“Oh really? I seem to recall someone starting the love of reporting long before I ever followed in her footsteps. And let’s not forget the whole helping out a league of superheroes,” Lois retorted. 

“Right, well I’m talking about normal stuff,” Chloe told her, smiling a little, “first kiss, first time, stuff like that...”

Lois smiled. “Yeah, but curiosity runs in our blood and helpfulness runs in yours so those things are normal to me, too.” She shrugged a little. 

Chloe rolled her eyes but smiled at her cousin, “I’m really glad you’re here.”

“You really think I’d be anywhere else?” She wrapped her arm around Chloe’s waist. 

“No, but it wouldn’t feel right if you weren’t.” Chloe said quietly, smiling a little more.

Lois paused for a moment. “Well, is this a good time to tell you I’m moving back to Metropolis?” 

Pausing, Chloe’s eyes widened, “you are? When? What about Richard?”

“He’s...moving back, too,” she admitted, smiling a bit. “And next month. About the time you’ll be back from your honeymoon.” 

Chloe bit down on her bottom lip then grinned, “does that mean I will actually see you during Christmas again?”

“That’s the plan,” Lois said happily. 

Smiling brightly, Chloe turned and hugged Lois, careful not to mess up either one of their dresses, “you will have to come to Star City a lot more often.”

“Well, considering one certain speedster on your team, I don’t think that’ll be a problem.” She hugged Chloe back just as carefully.

“And I’m trying to convince dad to stay until after Christmas too, so everyone will be around,” Chloe told Lois, closing her eyes and smiling, it would be nice to have her blood relatives there along with her adoptive ones.

“I’m sure between the two of us we can come up with _some_ way to convince him.” 

“I have no doubt,” Chloe said, grinning brightly as she pulled back, “now, how much longer do I have to wait until I can go out there?”

* * * 

Oliver sat on the edge of his bed, a faint smile on his face as he gazed at the picture of him when he was younger, with his mom and dad. He let out a breath and looked up toward the door when he heard a knock. “Come in.” 

Mia peeked inside and raised her eyebrows as she looked at him, “oh, good, you’re still here, I don’t have to go tell Chloe that you ran away last minute.”

He shook his head and smirked. “Sorry to disappoint,” he teased.

She walked in and closed the door, sitting down next to him, careful not to ruin her green bridesmaid dress, “what are you doing?”

He paused, glanced over at her, and held the picture frame out to her. “Just...reminiscing.” 

Taking the picture, she looked at it for a moment then glanced at him, “this is creepy, you still look pretty much the same.”

He chuckled involuntarily. “Gee, I look like a five year old? Thanks.” 

“You know what I mean,” she told him with a roll of his eyes, then smiled, “and you look like your mom.”

“You think so?” He looked down at the picture and studied it for a moment before smiling a little. 

“Yeah,” Mia nodded, looking down for a moment then back at him, “definitely.”

Oliver smiled at her. “You look pretty, Mia.” 

Pursing her lips together, she looked down at the dress and smiled, “thanks, I like this dress. Dressing up like this is a whole lot better.”

He nodded slightly, watching her carefully. “It suits you. And it’s even green.” He grinned.

“Yeah, yeah, like pretty much everything else in the wedding, Chloe is totally sucking up to you,” Mia told him with a smirk.

Oliver chuckled. “Or I’ve just grown on her.” He elbowed her lightly. 

Pursing her lips together, she smirked, “might not wanna tell her dad that, if you don’t get what you said sounds like.”

He rolled his eyes. “Funny.” 

“I totally am,” she told him, smirking, “so, aren’t you nervous or something?”

He paused, considering that. “Not really, no,” he told her with a soft smile.

“Good, because they sent me up here to tell you you need to get to your position,” she told him, smirking a little.

Oliver raised an eyebrow at her. “And here I thought you just wanted to wish me good luck.” 

“You’re not even nervous, you don’t need any,” she told him.

He leaned over and kissed her forehead before rising to his feet and holding his hand out to her to help her up.

Mia took his hand and stood up, looking up at him and grinning a little, “wait until you see Chloe.”

He smiled back at her. That moment couldn’t come soon enough.

* * *

 **Headquarters back yard, Star City -- December 12, 2011**

Chloe took a deep breath as she watched Mia going in last. Chloe held on to her dad’s arm and pursed her lips together, smiling nervously up at him but relaxing slightly as he pressed a kiss to the top of her head. 

“You look beautiful,” he told her, his eyes sparkling. 

“Thank you, dad.” She told him quietly, hugging his arm to her and letting her breath out as they started to walk toward the door that led to the small gathering in the backyard, she held her breath again as she stepped into view, her eyes going over the familiar faces for a moment then quickly finding Oliver.

The breath caught in his throat as he finally laid eyes on her. The dress was simple and modest, but as always, she looked incredibly beautiful. And she was about to marry _him_. He met her gaze and held it, his stomach tightening a little. Some small part of him had been afraid--even today--that she would change her mind and back out of the entire situation. It just all seemed too good to be true. 

But it was real. She was walking toward him in a wedding dress, in front of all their friends and family, and in just under an hour they’d be married and starting their lives together. 

Forever.

Her own stomach was tight as she held his gaze, the second she did, she didn’t see anyone else anymore. Her hold on her dad’s arm tightened slightly and he covered her hand with his free one, but she wasn’t paying attention. She didn’t particularly care about the ceremony, she was incredibly glad to have all of their friends and family there, yes, but she was too nervous about something going wrong with it to really allow herself to be too involved. 

What she did care about, however, was what it all meant. It was showing him that she loved him and despite all the things they had gone through and all the times she had been scared and had pushed him away, she was standing there, in front of everyone who mattered in their lives and promising him she would always be there, that he would always have her and that she was his just as much as he was hers. 

Today, they were officially becoming a family and although she and the team had considered Ollie family for a long time now, he would never have to wonder about if it was real again. Her two blood relatives accepted him as a part of the Sullivan-Lane clan, and Chloe was accepting Mia, the one member of the team who was, since he had legally become her guardian, actually family to him. 

Chloe wanted to give him that kind of security and acceptance that only family, no matter what kind, could provide and she wanted to show him that no matter what happened she, _they_ would be by his side. Because he was an amazing person and he deserved so much more than that. 

She wanted to let him know she considered herself the luckiest woman in the world for having him. 

As soon as she was close enough, and as soon as Gabe pulled his arm away from her, Oliver held his hand out to her with a soft smile on his face. “You look incredible,” he whispered. 

Chloe took his hand and squeezed it, instantly relaxing, both because she had made it all the way down the aisle without tripping and because he was with her now, “so do you,” she whispered back, still holding his gaze, even as they approached J’onn, who would be conducting the ceremony.

He squeezed her hand in return, meeting her eyes. “I love you,” he said quietly, lacing his fingers through hers.

“I love you,” she told him, smiling up at him and squeezing his hand once more, only breaking eye contact when Lois stepped closer to take her bouquet, before quickly looking back at him.

He held her gaze and smiled back at her, completely oblivious to everyone else around them. 

They may have been surrounded with friends and family, but for Oliver, he only had eyes for the woman before him. 

The love of his life.


	4. Chapter 4

**Headquarters, Star City -- December 12, 2011**

Once the ceremony was done, they gathered back inside, the living room had been converted into a larger dining room and there was enough food to feed about fifty people, although with Bart around, that was probably going to be necessary.

They had rented a few tables that were spread around, one of them had Gabe, Martha and Perry, Lois and Richard and J'onn. At a second table were Carter, Courtney, Victor, Bart, Mia, AC and Dinah.

At the third table were Emil, Bruce and his butler Alfred, Lana and Pete with a high chair for baby John and Chloe and Oliver had been making their way around, talking and catching up with everyone.

Chloe was grateful for the fact that Lois had helped her pull her dress up and hang the skirt of it higher so she wasn't afraid of tripping or stepping on it anymore and felt a lot better about having to move around, even though it was just a small group of them, she knew that Bart was still running around with the camera and she wanted to look her best on all the pictures of her wedding day.

Once she was done catching up with the table her dad was at, she stood up and looked around the room, looking for Ollie.

He stood at the table with the rest of the League, chatting with Mia and Bart about the food when he felt her eyes on him. He paused, and turned to look, meeting her gaze from a few feet away and smiling softly.

She smiled back and made her way over to him, her smile growing brighter as she reached over and took his hand, "and how are you doing?"

"Better now," he answered, his eyes lighting up as he leaned in and kissed her softly. "How about you, Mrs. Queen?"

Chloe returned the kiss and squeezed his hand softly, grinning brightly at that, "really good, Mr. Queen."

"Excellent," he murmured, resting his forehead against hers. "Have I mentioned that you look breathtaking?"

"Once or twice," she teased quietly, reaching with her free hand and adjusting his tie, "I think people are starting to think I don't care about what they are saying because I can't stop looking at you while they are talking."

"There are other people here?" he joked softly, reaching up to touch her cheek.

She grinned softly, leaning into his touch, "did you have enough to eat?"

Oliver nodded slightly. "Yeah, how about you?"

"Yeah, I did, and we still have cake," she told him, brushing her thumb over the back of his hand.

"How much longer do we have to stick around?" he teased, rubbing his nose against hers. "I'm ready to head to the jet."

Chloe smirked and kissed him softly, "enjoy the company of other people while you can because when we leave, you won't be seeing anyone else until we get back," she told him in a whisper, raising her eyebrows.

He raised his eyebrows in return. "And you think I'm disappointed about that? Hah." He kissed the corner of her mouth.

She grinned and squeezed his hand, brushing her nose against his, "in that case, I'm definitely ready to go too."

"Excellent." He kissed her nose and reached down to take her hand in his.

She looked down at their hands and smiled, brushing her thumb over his ring then looking back up at him.

Oliver met her eyes and smiled softly. "I believe we do have a _couple_ of things left to do before we go," he told her.

"You mean other than eating cake?" She said quietly, smirking softly as she cocked her head to look at him.

He grinned at that. "Yes. For one..." He pulled her closer, looking across the room to AC and nodding slightly, soft music began to play. "We have to have our first dance as husband and wife."

Chloe raised her eyebrows and smiled, glancing toward the stereo then back, smiling brightly, "I wasn't aware there was going to be dancing..."

"Of course. There's going to be a lot of dancing. Years of it," he informed her with a soft smile, resting his forehead against hers.

She smiled when someone lowered the lights of the room and pulled her hands from his, wrapping her arms loosely around his neck as she stepped closer, "sounds promising."

"Good. It is," he agreed, pulling her a little closer.

Leaning in, she pressed a soft kiss against his lips then pulled back enough to hold his gaze as they moved slowly in the center of the room, "it doesn't matter if there is no dancing, and other things _normal_ people do," she told him in a whisper, her eyes bright, "as long as I have you."

"As long as we have each other," he whispered back.

"Everything else, we can make it work," she told him, smiling and nodding slightly before brushing her nose against his.

He smiled softly at her, kissing her. "We always do."

She kissed him back and winced a little when there was a loud whistle, and without turning to see who it was, she grinned, "classy, Lo," she said loud enough to be heard over the music.

Oliver chuckled softly. "In-laws," he said with amusement.

"Welcome to the family," she told him with a bright smile.

His eyes were bright as he held her gaze. "Thank you."

Chloe cupped the back of his head and leaned in, brushing her lips against his, "I love you, Mr. Queen."

"And I love you, Mrs. Queen," he whispered.

She smiled against his lips and kissed him once more. Mrs. Queen definitely felt right, just like she'd expected it would.


End file.
